Questions? Contact Jenni Sprinz:
jenni.thecollinsgroup@gmail.com
719-528-1391
Our Trade Shows
Questions? Contact Jenni Sprinz:
jenni.thecollinsgroup@gmail.com
719-330-2839
TheCollinsGroup is excited to bring you 2 fantastic show opportunities for 2026:
1. Winter 2026 Virtual Retailer Symposium - January 11-15, 2026. Contact us for Vendor Registration. Store Registration is now open. See below for details.
2. Craft-Utopia Expo Summer 2026 - July 13-18, 2026. Visit www.craftutopiaexpo.com for more information.
The event will take place virtually from January 11-15, 2026. The education days are Sunday-Tuesday, January 11-13. The Tradeshow/Order Writing days are Wednesday and Thursday, January 14-15.
Register TODAY to save $25 off the General Registration Price. Early Bird Registration is available today through October 15 for $350 per store. General Registration is $375.
Event Description
The Virtual Retailer Symposium will take place over 5 days, three days of live classes and two days of visiting with each vendor in their virtual showrooms, plus you will have the opportunity to take all the classes and Sample Making Frenzy videos via pre-recorded instruction.
Day 1 – The day opens with the Product Lightning Round. In this session you will hear from each vendor about their latest and greatest products. However, more importantly, we will have a brief, but very important training session so that you can easily navigate the virtual show and get the most from your virtual experience. The remainder of the day will include 3 90-minute class sessions, taught by your favorite instructors from the various vendors (see the Virtual Retailer Symposium Agenda for details).
Days 2 & 3 – Days 2 & 3 each feature 4 sessions of 90-minute classes each from your favorite vendors. Each of the classes is structured for you to be able to re-teach the class to your customers.
Day 4 & 5 – These days will be filled with appointments to meet with each vendor in their virtual showrooms. During your meeting you will be able to see their latest products “live”, ask questions or discuss ideas, and get all the information you need to place orders and take advantage of the great show specials they are offering only to the participants of our event. NEW THIS YEAR: You will be submitting your availability and vendor meeting preferences through the registration process this year. For those of you who have sales reps making your sales appointments, this info will be forwarded to your sales rep. For those of you who don’t have a rep making your appointments, TheCollinsGroup will make those appointments for you this time to ensure that everyone has access to all the timeslots.
Please NOTE: Store registration will close on November 18. Registration will close at that time so that vendors can make the appropriate number of class kits and send them to TheCollinsGroup for packing into “Show Kits” that will be sent to you.
All classes are specially planned for independent Crafting Retailers and your team--store managers, and in-house teachers. Events are planned so that you can learn about the best new products and the latest paper crafting techniques to help GROW YOUR BUSINESS and SELL MORE PRODUCT. Our classes provide you with complete projects and instructions that you can use in your store and teach to your customers - thus building enthusiasm and maximizing sales. By re-teaching all of the classes in your store, you should be able to more than offset the cost of the event.
We are excited to confirm that ALL of our vendors teaching classes and participating in the Sample Making Frenzy have agreed that ALL CLASS AND SAMPLE MAKING FRENZY CONTENT IS EXCLUSIVE TO SHOW ATTENDEES FOR AT LEAST 120 DAYS AFTER THE EVENT.
Show Agenda and Schedule
Please note that the agenda shows US Eastern time zones. When you are in the registration system, times are also shown in Eastern Time. Because this is primarily a LIVE event, we did our best to accommodate stores from all parts of the US.
